Rennes-Strasbourg: Precious Gameiro, Bourigeaud extinguished... the tops and the flops

Tops

Long amorphous offensively despite a few attempts at the start of the match, the Strasbourg attack changed face when Kévin Gameiro and Lebo Mothiba replaced Sahi Dion and Angelo shortly before the hour mark. Very available, the French striker was at the origin of several movements before unleashing a powerful shot repelled by Steve Mandanda but taken back by his South African partner for the equalizer. If the Alsatians come away with a point, they can thank their two jokers, launched at the right time by Patrick Vieira.

Already scoring a sublime volley against Maccabi Haifa (3-0) in the Europa League a month ago, the left back of Stade Rennais did it again to open the scoring against Racing. On the lookout for a deflected cross from Assignon, he gave Sels no chance by placing his half-volley from the right, his wrong foot, into the side net. Otherwise solid defensively and never stingy with his efforts in his lane, Truffert combined a lot with Gouiri but came up against the grouped defense of Strasbourg who always put foot or head to save the furniture.

The 35-year-old Serbian midfielder once again showed his class this afternoon despite the poor Rennes score. Less visible in the second half, the former Roma player was busy in the first half, directing the game with the technical quality we know from him. He even showed all his experience by stopping Bakwa who was going on a counter-attack just before the break, receiving a logical yellow card. At Roazhon Park this Sunday, Matic displayed a sufficient level to dominate the Strasbourg midfield, unlike some of his partners...

Flops

Responsible for set pieces and sought on numerous occasions, Ludovic Blas and Benjamin Bourigeaud missed everything in the last gesture. The former Nantais player multiplied the shots off target, often repeating the same action by returning to his left foot. In vain. His captain did little better by wasting ammunition on a free kick, both in the center and in the direct shot. Rennes' offensive play was sorely lacking in rhythm and variation. The fault is partly the lack of inspiration of its two designated creators.

Faced with a lackluster Stade Rennais, Strasbourg could have achieved a major blow with additional ambition and technical quality. The first minutes of the offensive players, Dilane Bakwa and Emanuel Emegha in particular, promised great things before a long slump until the last quarter of an hour. The RCSA took a very long time to react after Truffert's goal but did well in the end. This point gleaned should do him good, putting an end to a series of three defeats in a row with worrying content.